Washington State SBIRT Primary Care Integration: Implementation

Implementation of the Washington State SBIRT Primary Care Integration Program

This report examines clinic experiences with respect to implementation of the Washington State Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment – Primary Care Integration (WASBIRT-PCI) Program. SBIRT is an evidence-based, universal public health approach used to identify, prevent, and reduce substance use disorders. With the goal of expanding SBIRT services, the WASBIRT-PCI Program was implemented in nineteen healthcare facilities in five counties, screening nearly 83,000 patients over the five year period. Among the patients screened, 11 percent were found to be at risk for a substance use disorder or to experience adverse outcomes related to their substance use. Clinics effectively implemented the screening component, however delivery of the SBIRT intervention using a behavioral health specialist (BHS) was met with varying degrees of success depending on the setting: the BHS model appeared to be more successful in emergency department or specialty mental health settings than in primary care.